Hackers broadcast pornographic footage on highway billboard

Cairo: Egyptian authorities have confirmed that a cyberattack caused pornographic footage to appear on a large digital billboard overlooking one of Cairo's busiest roads, with similar screens in several other countries affected at the same time.

The incident reportedly occurred on Thursday, October 29, along the 26 July Corridor in Giza, in the direction of Sheikh Zayed City, sparking widespread controversy after videos showing the explicit content circulated on social media.

Egypt's Interior Ministry said its investigation found that the billboard belonged to an advertising company that had contracted an international firm to distribute advertising content electronically across its screens.

The international company's website was hacked, causing the footage to be broadcast simultaneously on the billboard in Giza and similar advertising screens in several countries, the ministry said.

The company subsequently took technical measures to suspend broadcasts on its screens while addressing the breach and working to restore normal operations. The ministry confirmed that legal measures had also been taken.

In a separate statement, Al Arabia United Advertising Company said it had detected unauthorised access to one of its advertising screens by an unidentified party.

The company said it was investigating the circumstances of the incident in coordination with the relevant authorities and had shut down the affected screen as a precaution.

Earlier, an Egyptian security source said that authorities were examining the widely circulated video to establish its authenticity, identify those responsible for operating the screen and determine whether the incident had resulted from a cyberattack or another cause.